Animus (demon, Blade foe)

ANIMUS

Real Name: Unrevealed (though he was known as Animus)

Identity/Class: Demon

Occupation: Predator

Group Membership: None

Affiliations: His host bodies including Dan (a mall Santa), unidentified girl, unidentified security guard, unidentified husband

Enemies: Blade (Eric Brooks), unidentified security guard, unidentified husband

Known Relatives: None

Aliases: None

Base of Operations: Mobile on Earth through hosts;
formerly possibly a portion of Hell

First Appearance: Blade III#4 (February, 2007)

Powers/Abilities: Animus was a level nine demon without his own body. He could transfer his soul into any other being with a soul within the fraction of a second, but had to be in close proximity (around ten feet at most) to do so.

Height: Variable (depended on host)
Weight: Variable (depended on host)
Eyes: Red (during possession of host)
Hair: Variable (depended on host)

History:

(Blade III#4) -
'Twas a day before Christmas, when all through the mall
people were stirring, to buy that big Christmas haul;
A girl listed her wishes to Santa with much care,
while the mall Santa listened as long as he could bear;
He asked her if she had been a good girl this year;
while the vampire-hunter Blade approched the Santa without fear;
Blade noticed that moment that something was wrong,
because his senses for the supernatural kicked in really strong.
He asked the mall Santa to go with him outside,
but Santa was not willing to go for that ride.
"That's not the kind of request I typically take."
Blade was sure now that this Santa was fake.
He picked up "Santa" by his big red coat,
security was called, "Santa" eyes turned red and he began to gloat.
The security guard hit Blade in the back of his head,
taken over by the soul-jumping demon, which was really bad.
Blade dealt with Animus, a demon from a place far below.
He had heard about him some time ago.
Animus jumped back to "Santa," unaware whom he faced,
thinking about ways this hunter could be erased.
He tried and tried to take over Blade,
but the hunter lacked the soul the demon needed for the trade.
Without hesitation Animus formed a new plan,
knowing full well that Blade was a good man.
He took over the girl, which Blade dared not kill,
beating up the hunter as the girl with much thrill.

The guard pulled his gun and told both to stop,
but the demon took over the poor mall cop.
The demon put the guard's gun to his own head,
pulled the trigger and now the man was dead.
He jumped back to Santa to continue the fight,
because beating up Blade felt so right.
A man that knew Santa as his good friend Dan,
asked him what the hell he was doing to this other man.
Before Blade could tell everyone to get out,
the demon took over Dan's friend as this was what the demon was all about.
The wife was scared and ran away really fast,
while seeing him claw out his eyes, which made her aghast.
The demon got past the pain to get to the sensation,
which was rather interesting according to his explanation.

Blade knew the demon would remain a threat,
as long as he could jump to new hosts to cause more regret.
Torturing people was what the demon liked,
Blade was faced with a decision and he wasn't psyched.
To kill the demon he had to kill the host,
an innocent man, a husband, a father at most.
Back in Santa the demon beat up Blade without regret,
trying to end Blade so he will never forget,
that Animus had ended the hunter once and for all,
but Blade made sure that he was not the one taking the fall.
Blade was seemingly begging for his life,
the demon asked him not beg and promised to end this strife.
But with no more shoppers to possess,
the demon was forced with a situation he had to adress.
Blade pulled out a gun and took his shot,
the mall Santa's head blew up on the spot.
The demon and three people were dead,
Blade felt sorry and wished it had ended any other way instead.
In the distance sirens could be heard,
so Blade ran away because getting arrested was not what he preferred.
His last words though were pretty crass,
as he said his best wishes: "Merry Christmas, my ass."

Comments: Created by Marc Guggenheim & Howard Chaykin.

According to Tom Brevoort this demon was not the same as the Animus (aka. Hate-Monger) from the early 90s.

I tried really hard to turn this profile into a poem with a similar start to "A Visit from St. Nicholas" by Clement Clarke Moore.

Profile by Markus Raymond.

CLARIFICATIONS:
Animus has no known connection to:

Animus (Denise Baranger) - aka. Vamp, former S.H.I.E.L.D. operative, Corporation agent--Captain America I#217
Animus - aka. Hate Monger, demon, allied with Sons of the Serpent--Avengers I#341
Animus - proto-husk created from Denis Baranger's DNA, Arnim Zola creation--Deadpool III#6
Dr. Frederick Animus - the Ani-Mator, geneticist funded by the Right, creator of Ani-Mates--New Mutants I#59
any other character with a similar name

images (without ads)
Blade III#4, p15, pan4 (main, possessing mall Santa aka. Dan)
Blade III#4, p13, pan1 (possessing girl)
Blade III#4, p14, pan1 (possessing security guard)
Blade III#4, p19, pan3 (possessing Dan's friend)
Blade III#4, p21, pan5 (taking out the demon and unfortunately also mall Santa)

Appearances:
Blade III#4 (February, 2007) - Marc Guggenheim (writer), Howard Chakyin (artist), Aubrey Sitterson (editor)

First Posted: 12/24/2022
Last updated: 12/24/2022

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

Non-Marvel Copyright info
All other characters mentioned or pictured are ™ and © 1941-2099 Marvel Characters, Inc. All Rights Reserved. If you like this stuff, you should check out the real thing!
Please visit The Marvel Official Site at: http://www.marvel.com

Special Thanks to www.g-mart.com for hosting the Appendix, Master List, etc.!

Back to Characters

	(Blade III#4) - 'Twas a day before Christmas, when all through the mall people were stirring, to buy that big Christmas haul; A girl listed her wishes to Santa with much care, while the mall Santa listened as long as he could bear; He asked her if she had been a good girl this year; while the vampire-hunter Blade approched the Santa without fear; Blade noticed that moment that something was wrong, because his senses for the supernatural kicked in really strong. He asked the mall Santa to go with him outside, but Santa was not willing to go for that ride. "That's not the kind of request I typically take." Blade was sure now that this Santa was fake. He picked up "Santa" by his big red coat, security was called, "Santa" eyes turned red and he began to gloat. The security guard hit Blade in the back of his head, taken over by the soul-jumping demon, which was really bad. Blade dealt with Animus, a demon from a place far below. He had heard about him some time ago. Animus jumped back to "Santa," unaware whom he faced, thinking about ways this hunter could be erased. He tried and tried to take over Blade, but the hunter lacked the soul the demon needed for the trade. Without hesitation Animus formed a new plan, knowing full well that Blade was a good man. He took over the girl, which Blade dared not kill, beating up the hunter as the girl with much thrill.
	The guard pulled his gun and told both to stop, but the demon took over the poor mall cop. The demon put the guard's gun to his own head, pulled the trigger and now the man was dead. He jumped back to Santa to continue the fight, because beating up Blade felt so right. A man that knew Santa as his good friend Dan, asked him what the hell he was doing to this other man. Before Blade could tell everyone to get out, the demon took over Dan's friend as this was what the demon was all about. The wife was scared and ran away really fast, while seeing him claw out his eyes, which made her aghast. The demon got past the pain to get to the sensation, which was rather interesting according to his explanation.
	Blade knew the demon would remain a threat, as long as he could jump to new hosts to cause more regret. Torturing people was what the demon liked, Blade was faced with a decision and he wasn't psyched. To kill the demon he had to kill the host, an innocent man, a husband, a father at most. Back in Santa the demon beat up Blade without regret, trying to end Blade so he will never forget, that Animus had ended the hunter once and for all, but Blade made sure that he was not the one taking the fall. Blade was seemingly begging for his life, the demon asked him not beg and promised to end this strife. But with no more shoppers to possess, the demon was forced with a situation he had to adress. Blade pulled out a gun and took his shot, the mall Santa's head blew up on the spot. The demon and three people were dead, Blade felt sorry and wished it had ended any other way instead. In the distance sirens could be heard, so Blade ran away because getting arrested was not what he preferred. His last words though were pretty crass, as he said his best wishes: "Merry Christmas, my ass."